


Pike goes to Meklevar's House

by JamieTayl



Series: Monsters and Mana [4]
Category: Voltron: Legendary Defender
Genre: M/M, Monsters & Mana (Voltron)
Language: English
Status: Completed
Published: 2020-08-20
Updated: 2020-08-20
Packaged: 2021-03-06 17:07:54
Rating: Not Rated
Warnings: Creator Chose Not To Use Archive Warnings
Chapters: 1
Words: 3,045
Publisher: archiveofourown.org
Story URL: https://archiveofourown.org/works/26012383
Author URL: https://archiveofourown.org/users/JamieTayl/pseuds/JamieTayl
Summary: Pike visits Meklevar's house.
Relationships: Lance/Shiro (Voltron)
Series: Monsters and Mana [4]
Series URL: https://archiveofourown.org/series/1881637
Comments: 3
Kudos: 17





	Pike goes to Meklevar's House

Pike’s kittens were now all grown up. They were fiercely protective of everyone in the party, just like Pike. Pike’s daughters caught rabbits and Pike collected herbs. Pike brought their bounty to Block. It was only a day’s journey to Meklevar’s house, and it was dwarven tradition to come bearing gifts. Pike pointed out that Sam and Matt could count as a gift, but Meklevar said they found her and not the other way around. While Block prepared the rabbit, everyone ate the fish Gyro caught. 

“My mom is traditional, but she’ll forgive you if you make a mistake with our customs since you’re not dwarves,” Meklevar said. 

That was a relief. Pike didn’t even understand human customs. 

“Should I hide my heritage?” Pike asked. It was best to be blunt. He needed to know if it was safe. Meklevar looked at Sam. 

“I wish I could say my wife would be fine with that, but I’m not completely sure,” Sam said. He looked sad. 

Pike wouldn’t stay long, then. He wouldn’t be able to hide his species for a prolonged period of time. 

“How about my daughters? Is she alright with bobcats?”. 

“I would suggest leaving them outside.”

Pike was outraged that his daughters would have to stay outside. He didn’t say anything, but he was sure the other felt his disapproval. 

Pike wasn’t worried about what he would be eating at Meklevar’s house. He was mostly a carnivore, but he could do with a human diet for a little while. He needed to supplement his diet with other food groups sometimes anyway. 

“Valyaun, you might want to cover your ears,” Sam said. 

Valayun put her hand over her eyes. Sam chuckled and shook his head at her. She removed her hands. 

“When we get to the house, you should cover your ears with your hair or a scarf,” he explained. 

Valayun scowled, and then quickly slipped back into a polite smile.

“And why is that?”. 

“Collen might not be receptive to having an elf over,” Sam said. 

Valayun put her hair, which was loose, in a high ponytail. 

“I am Princess Valayun, heir to the throne of Altea. I shalt not hide my heritage.”

Pike didn’t understand what the big deal was. Elves looked almost the same as humans. He should be the one who was worried. He couldn’t believe Sam had waited until now to tell him he needed to cover his ears and tail. 

Sam said that if they had formal outfits they should put them on. Valayun, Gyro, and Block already wore formal clothing, so they were fine. Keith didn’t have any formal clothes. That left Pike. He crouched behind a bush. Pike rummaged through his back until he found his formal clothes at the bottom. He slipped on his flowy blue shorts and matching open vest. He struggled to put on his gold body chains. He always got his mom or sister to help him with that part. Pike put his headband over his ears tightly and tucked his tail into his shorts. He tied his scarf around his waist in a way that made it appear as a fashionable wide belt but was really for masking the bulge in the back of his pants. He must look terrible with a scarf belt and a plain headband along with a formal outfit. Pike walked out from behind the bush and walked towards the others. He hoped they wouldn’t say anything mean, he already knew the combination of clothes didn’t look good. 

“Oh, my,” Gyro said before shielding his eyes. 

Pike looked down at the ground. He didn’t think he looked THAT bad. 

“That outfit is awfully revealing,” Gyro added. 

Oh. He was just embarrassed. 

“Uh, Pike? Is that the formal outfit that’s traditional to your people?” Meklevar asked. 

Pike nodded. 

“Humans in different cultures dress differently, that can easily be explained away,” Matt said. 

That was good. Pike didn’t want to struggle out of these chains anytime soon. 

They arrived at the house just after dark. Valayun held her head high and displayed her ears proudly. Pike wished he could do that. The headband hurt his ears. Pike looked at the entrance of the house. It was a fine door that looked to be made entirely of gemstones. Around the door was not a house but a mountain. Pike wasn’t too sure about this. He didn’t see any windows. Gyro pushed open the door. Pike could see his muscles clenching and hear his breathing get faster. It must be really heavy. The door opened to reveal a stone staircase carved in the mountain leading down. Torches lit the path. Pike really didn’t like this. He saw the stone ceiling above them and pictures the crushing weight of the mountain on top. Pike walked with the other for about ten minutes until they reached another door. This one was a single door, but it was also made entirely of gemstones. Sam pushed this one open and they all entered. The entrance revealed a massive hall. The ceiling was as high as the cocoa trees of Pike’s homeland. The walls and floor were made of smooth stone. Pike noticed a slightly raised rounded stone. Matt gestured to Sam. Sam smiled and waved Matt forward. Matt stepped onto the stone and then jumped. Pike heard the music of a flute. They waited for a few minutes until a person came. She was a young woman with straight black head fur and brown eyes. Her clothes were simple, so Pike assumed she was staff. She was short, like the other dwarves. She stopped in her tracks when she saw Sam and Matt. 

“You have returned!”. She smoothed down her dress. 

“Forgive me, sirs, I forgot my manners. As the earth shakes, I will be by your side,” she said. 

Matt and Sam placed their hands on their hearts and bowed to her.

Must be a dwarf thing. 

“Brilnura, It’s good to see you again,” Meklevar said. 

“As the earth shakes, I will be by your side,” Brilnura repeated. 

Meklevar put her hand over her heart and bowed. Brilnura scanned her eyes over the guests quickly. She did a double-take when she saw Pike’s clothing, and then again when she saw Valayun’s ears. 

“Take us to Kolleena, please,” Sam said. 

Brilnura led them to a side entrance. They walked up a stone spiral staircase and up past the second floor and onto the third floor. At least Pike was high up now. The third floor was all plain stone. The lower floors must be for show. They walked past many doorways and took so many turns that Pike was hopelessly lost. Pike never got lost. He always had the sun and stars to guide him, along with scent. He hated this place. Brilnura finally knocked on a plain stone door. 

“Ma’m, your kin has returned,” Brilnura said. A second later the door almost smacked her in the face. There stood Kolleena, Meklevar’s mother. She scanned her guests. When she saw Matt she froze. She stared at him as if she believed he was an illusion. 

“My son,” Kolleena whispered. 

“As the Earth shakes, I will be by-” Matt started. 

Kolleena launched herself forward and squeezed him into a hug. 

“My beautiful boy. How I’ve missed you.”

Matt squeezed her back. Their hug lasted a long time. Kolleena held Matt’s face in her hands.

“As the Earth shakes, I will be by your side,” Sam said. Kolleena gasped and looked at him. She forewent any formal gesture and pulled him into a hug. 

“Hey mom,” Meklevar said. That definitely wasn’t traditional. Kolleena hugged Meklevar quickly.

“Next time you greet me you better use the traditional saying,” Kolleena warned.

“Now. Who are your friends?”. Kolleena looked down the line of people. She smiled when she saw Block and Gyro. Block handed her the rabbit as a gift. She looked disapproving of Keith, probably due to his plain clothing. When she saw Pike she scowled. 

“Different human cultures have different formal clothes,” Sam explained. 

Kolleena nodded. She looked satisfied with that explanation. She looked pleased with Valayun’s clothing, but then she did a double-take. She zeroed in on Valayun’s ears. 

“I am Valayun. It is a pleasure to meet you,” Valayun said. She curtsied. 

Kolleena glanced at Sam. He nodded at her. 

“It is an honor to meet one who stands so tall,” Kolleena said. 

“How dare you,” Meklevar spat. “She’s saved all of us from death more than once. Don’t you dare insult her.”

Pike didn’t know why that was an insult, but he guessed it had to do with how short dwarves were. 

“She’s also a princess,” Sam said. 

“I am Princess Valayun, heir to the throne of Altea, daughter of King Alfor and Queen Melanor,” Valayun said. 

“I apologize, your highness. I was unaware of your station.” Kolleena looked to be gritting her teeth. 

“I feel that all people should be respected regardless of station,” Valayun remarked. 

Kolleena pursed her lips but didn’t say anything.

“My name is Pike,” Pike said. 

She looked at him like she was waiting for more information. 

“Son of Song of Paradise and Rafael.” 

She continued looking at him. 

“Uh, that’s it,” Pike said. 

“What is your family’s profession?”. 

Pike had no clue what a profession was. He looked at Block in desperation. 

“Pike grew up speaking a different dialect of common, so he doesn’t always understand everything,” Block said. “His mom is like the equivalent of a clan chief. His clan is called, uh, People of the Trees.” 

Kolleena nodded. She seemed pleased, so that was good. She turned to Keith. Pike was glad she didn’t ask what his first language was. It would be hard to explain why someone who appeared to be human spoke Tabaxi. Technically Pike grew up speaking a similar version of common Block did, along with the Tabaxi language, but he needed a way to explain why he didn’t understand human culture. Pike’s clan name actually translated to ‘Fierce Tabaxi of the High Treetops’, but that was close enough since Pike was pretending to be human. Humans didn’t live in the treetops. Except for Pike’s father. 

“I’m Keith. My dad’s a farmer.” 

“What is your family name?”.

“Kogane.”

“What are your parent’s names?”.

“Heith and Krolia.”

Kolleena didn’t ask him any more questions. 

“I would give you our famous clan emerald and jade risotto, but unfortunately humans can’t eat gemstones,” Kolleena said, ”we’ll have to make do with a mushroom and moss platter.”

Pike had never eaten either of those things. He hoped they weren’t toxic to Tabaxi. 

Brilnura led them to a room with plush couches strewn with animal furs. They surrounded a large round table. The walls were covered in mounted animal heads. Pike felt his own fur fluff up. Everyone casually sat on the furniture. Pike sat next to Gyro. The dead eyes of the animal heads stared at Pike. Meklevar’s family chatted about their experiences. Pike wasn’t listening. He was focusing on forcing himself not to stand up and leave the room. He was fine with killing and eating prey, but he didn’t like seeing it preserved and kept in a home. He knew that displaying the animal heads and pelts was to show that humans were proud of their catch, and Pike felt that humans were free to do as they wished, but he didn’t want to be near it. He pressed himself into Gyro’s side. Gyro put his arm around him and looked at him. Pike wanted to bury his face in Gyro’s neck but he didn’t know if that was alright with human or dwarven customs. 

When Pike felt like he could take it no longer, Brilnura returned with a cart filled with food. She put a plate of food and stone cups of water in front of everyone and then left. The food smelled foul. Kolleena started eating first, then Sam started eating, and then Matt, and the Meklevar. Block motioned towards Valayun. Then it was Pike’s turn. Pike forced himself to take the fork and put green and grey mush in his mouth. It tasted like the scent of rotten fish and mud. Block started eating next, and then Gyro, then finally Keith. Pike was sick of all this formal nonsense. He missed being with just his party and not worrying about making a mistake. Pike tucked the food between his teeth and his cheek. He wasn’t swallowing that junk. He didn’t know how everyone else was eating this. The only person who didn’t look like he was enjoying it was Keith. Pike felt a rare moment of comradeship between them. They would both suffer for Meklevar. Pike kept putting food in his mouth and tucking it in his cheeks. His cheeks were starting to hurt, almost burn. He finally reached a point where he had no room left. He reluctantly swallowed a forceful of the mush. He coughed. Gyro looked at him but the others continued their conversation. Pike was about to force another mouthful when the burning feeling in his mouth got worse. Pike swallowed some water. He felt better for a second, and then the burning returned. It was getting harder to breathe. Pike spat mouthfuls of food onto his plate. He heard the conversation cease. Pike gasped for air. 

“Allergic,” Pike managed to gasp. 

Block threw things out of his bag searching for something that would help. Pike fell sideways. He was hyperventilating. He saw Block walking over through his now blurry vision. He felt a prick on his arm. Block held a vial of something to Pike’s lips. It smelled safe so Pike swallowed it. Pike kept gasping for air for a few seconds, but then his throat opened up again, and his vision cleared. Pike gratefully took in mouthfuls of air. Pike was exhausted and shaking. He let himself lie down for a few minutes. 

“Are you feeling better,” Gyro asked in a hushed tone. Pike was surprised to feel the vibration of his voice, and then he realized he was lying on Gyro’s lap. 

“A little,” Pike said. His throat was scratchy. He coughed. 

“Try not to talk, buddy,” Block said. 

“What is happening? Did he choke?” Kolleena said. 

“No, It’s called an allergic reaction. Some humans can’t eat certain things without getting very sick and possibly dying,” Block explained. 

It was cool that dwarves didn’t have allergies. Pike looked at Gyro’s headband. He batted at the headband. Shiny. Gyro took his hand and put it back on his lap. Aww, what did he do that for? It was then that Pike realized the oxygen deprivation might be affecting him. 

“I can call a doctor,” Kolleena offered.

That was nice of her. 

“That’s not necessary, that potion should heal him by tomorrow,” Block said. They said some more things but Pike’s mind slid in and out of focus. Gyro picked Pike up. This made the world spin. Pike closed his eyes and rested his head on Gyro’s chest. He heard Gyro’s footsteps and felt the breeze as he walked. Gyro set him down on something soft and covered him with something warm. Pike knocked the warm thing off of him. It was too hot. People were saying things and moving around but Pike couldn’t bring himself to figure out what was going on. He nuzzled into the soft thing and closed his eyes. 

When Pike woke up he panicked. He was in a bed in a stone room with no windows or natural light. His headband was no longer wrapped around his head and his tail was loose. He took in a gulp of air. The fresh scents of his party members calmed him. He nuzzled into a pillow that smelled like Gyro. The pillow grunted. Pike shifted away. He guessed it was okay for humans to share beds, then. Gyro turned over and blinked a few times. 

“Are you awake,” Gyro whispered.

Obviously he was awake, his eyes were open- oh right, humans couldn’t see very well in the dark. 

“Yeah,” Pike whispered. 

“How are you feeling?”. 

“I’m okay. My throat is still sore.”

Pike shifted forward until he was pressed against Gyro. Gyro put his arm over Pike and pressed him closer. Pike closed his eyes. He felt a hand in his head fur stroking his ears. Pike leaned into the touch. Pike was in heaven. This was his favorite sensation. A few minutes later Pike realized he was purring. 

“I didn’t know you could purr,” Gyro whispered. Pike was glad Gyro couldn’t see his blush in the dark. It was not unusual for a Tabaxi to purr. It was commonplace, in fact. Gyro was making him feel special, though. Pike automatically licked Gyro’s forearm. Gyro withdrew his arm quickly. 

“Sorry,” Pike said, ”I forgot humans don’t groom each other with their tongues.” 

Gyro slowly extended his arm again.

“I don’t mind, I was just surprised.” Gyro put his hand back on Pike’s head and started scratching behind his ears again. Pike hesitantly licked Gyro’s arm. Gyro didn’t have much fur on his arm, but it was polite to groom someone who was grooming you. His siblings did it for him. Gyro continued to scratch behind his ears for a long time, even after Pike finished grooming his arm fur. Maybe Gyro wanted Pike to groom the rest of him, too. Humans had a lot of head fur, so he started there. Gyro wasn’t wearing his headband. He started licking the front of Gyro’s hair. 

“Is that going to make my hair a weird texture?”. 

“No, why would it? I’m just cleaning it.”

Gyro stayed silent after that. Pike groomed all the fur he could reach from his lying down position. Gyro’s fur was very soft and smooth. Pike told Gyro he thought so. 

“Do you know what time it is?” Pike asked. He couldn’t see if the sun was up because there were no windows. Gyro pointed at a clock on the wall. 

“It’s 4:00.”

As if that meant anything to Pike. 

“It should be a few hours until the sun rises,” Gyro added. 

“Would you two shut up, I’m trying to sleep,” Keith said. 

Pike wondered how long he had been listening.


End file.
